This weekend Eric and I went on a hiking adventure in Hamilton with our cameras, backpacks, and tripod in tote. I totally underestimated how tiring lugging 10 pounds of camera equipment would be while fumbling all over steep trails. Somehow I didn’t wipe out despite wearing my 5 year old sneakers with the soles worn out. I will not be making that mistake twice!

I didn’t know this until recently, but Hamilton has over 120 waterfalls, making it a very scenic area for photography. Hamilton calls itself the “waterfall capital of the world”. Quite a claim! As I type this post on Sunday evening, Eric is printing a map and plans to pin all of the 120 falls that we visit this summer. He has that “man on a mission” look in his eyes. Help…

Before I get to our weekend adventure, here’s a little backstory about how we came to love photography. It’s a fairly recent interest of ours, or maybe I’m just in denial about how long ago 2007 really is…

2007

Eric bought his first DSLR camera (a Canon 30D) and promptly fell in love with travel photography on a trip to Mexico. I was intimidated by using such a huge camera with so many (breakable) functions, so I stuck with my point-and-shoot (Canon Powershot). His camera made me nervous! My track record wasn’t exactly stellar with my point-and-shoot camera anyways; I dropped it countless times. Plus, I could tuck it into my purse wherever I went and it was easy to use. The point-and-shoot did the trick for a while, but as I would soon find out, I quickly outgrew it (or maybe my purse just got bigger). We continued to enjoy travel photography whenever we found ourselves away from home.

October 31st, I started Oh She Glows. I continued to use my point-and-shoot camera for about a year and a half. Eric’s camera sat mostly unused in the closet while I ignored it.

Here are a few of the first food pictures I took on the blog (one, two, and three) with my point-and-shoot.

2009

Mid-to-end of 2009, after much persuasion from Eric (I think he was trying to tell me something!), I tried out his fancy pants camera. Well, his camera didn’t leave my sticky little hands from that point forward. The clarity was unreal and I instantly regretted not using it sooner. I was still intimidated by all of the functions on the 30D and continued to shoot in automatic mode (often with a flash), even though he insisted I shoot in raw mode to get the most benefit out of it.

All in due time. I think it’s clear by this point that I’m not one to rush into anything!

2010

I finally started to shoot in raw, manual mode by the end of 2010. Whohoo! I’d like to say that it was easy at first, but there was definitely a major learning curve. All the rules seemed opposite of logic. Habits can be hard to break so I went back to automatic a few times before manual mode finally clicked (literally) with my brain. Once I figured out what my camera could do for me, it opened up a whole other understanding and interest.

2011

I invested in my own camera equipment [see my FAQ page (question #10) for more info], Eric got his camera back (but now wants a new one), and photography is now a huge part of our lives. It drives me crazy at times and can be incredibly frustrating, but the challenge is what keeps me coming back each day. I also learned quite a bit from the book Plate to Pixel. My old point-and-shoot finally died so I now have a newer Canon Powershot camera, still tucked away in my purse at all times! Eric has started to teach himself how to create HDR photos as well as dabbling with Microsoft Photosynth more recently. More on that later.

June 2012

Our first hiking destination this weekend was to Webster Falls (photo top of page). It’s very close to the parking lot and extremely easy to get to on well-groomed paths. Very family friendly! After Webster, we walked over to Tews Falls, which was only a 15 minute walk or so from Webster. This walk was a bit more challenging with plenty of stairs, but it was still on well-groomed trails and very easy to find. You can see Tews falls below on the right. This picture was taken from the look out point. Gorgeous!

Apparently there are stairs that lead down to the base of the falls, but they were closed this weekend. I would’ve just packed up and headed to the next waterfall, but Eric thought it was a good idea to get to the base of Tews falls on our own. Off roading! Eek. I thought he was crazy, but he eventually convinced me with aid of the random directions he printed online. Double eek.

After hiking on what was mostly ungroomed, rocky trails, we ended up getting off-trail for over half an hour. The directions mentioned a campground and when we came across this “lost cabin” we thought that was it. Well, it wasn’t the campground, but we were so tired at this point we were debating a nap!

By the time we arrived to the base, we were hot, sweaty, slightly cranky (mostly me), and thankful to be near water. Thirty seconds prior to this, I threatened Eric that I was leaving if we didn’t find it soon. ha!

It was off with the sneakers and on with the Crocs!!!

The water was freezing at first, but really refreshing! I was a bit scared getting in the water, but I survived.

The view of Tews from the base! The hike was definitely worth it.

Water is a great way to learn the influence of shutter speed. The images below left are taken using a fast shutter speed (approx 1/400 of a second) and the images below right are taken using a very slow shutter speed (around 1 second or so). The tripod is necessary to ground the camera and prevent shake (although I think there was still a bit of shake as it was on uneven rocks). Also, when using slow shutter speeds, the pictures will be really blurry without a tripod. Lugging the tripod was a pain, but I wouldn’t have been able to get the pictures on the right without it.

You can see that the fast shutter speed (left) results in choppier water, while the slow shutter speed (right) results in flowy & smooth water. I’m partial to the right. What about you?

I was covered in Goosebumps head to toe after I got out of the water, but quickly sweat up a storm during the uphill hike back.

After taking tons of pictures, we sat on a rock and relaxed! It was so peaceful listening to the waterfall. We munched on some Endurance Crackers for good measure.

The end of day 1 left us sore and stiff, but super excited for day 2. That will have to wait for another post!

In the meantime, check out this Microsoft Photosynth 360 panoramic that Eric put together. In a nut shell, Eric took between 50-125 photos in a 360 degree grid of the area, from the bottom to the top. Then he put them all into this Microsoft Photosynth program and the result is below. There are a couple patchy areas, but I think it’s a great first effort! This type of photography suits his mathematical and analytical personality very well! He’s working on a few tutorial posts for the blog coming up (on HDR and Photosynth), so keep your eyes peeled.

You can click and drag your mouse and scroll to zoom into the photo. You will need Silverlight installed to view it, by the way.

Those pictures are awesome! I’d have to say that I like the water with the fast shutter speed the best. It looks like I’m there in the picture watching the clear water flowing over the rocks. I love waterfalls and if I ever make it up to that area, I’m definitely going hiking! Btw, I have to say those endurance crackers are sooooo yummy! I love how they are suitable for virtually any type of diet – vegan, raw (if dehydrated), gluten-free, anti-fungal, etc. Keep up the great work with the recipes….and the photos :-)

I just looked into anti-fungal diets recently because…this is kind of embarrassing…but, I had a fungal infection in my armpits. So weird, right? That had never happened to me in my entire life. As soon as I put Lotrimin on them, the itchy and red infection went away. It’s somewhat common because I googled my symptoms (I don’t usually do this as it can be scary). Anyways, I didn’t want to just calm the symptoms, I wanted to fix the root cause. So, I started looking into anti-fungal diets and herbs. Basically, it’s a type of anti-candida diet with no sugar, no gluten, no dairy, and no fruit. There are so many different protocols though. Some include beans, some don’t. Some include starchy veggies, some don’t. Some include tofu and fermented soybean products, others don’t. You also don’t have to stay on the diet forever. Some people have bad systemic problems but others can do it for a short time to kill the fungus and then go back to a regular, whole foods, organic diet. It can get confusing, but if one knows how to listen to their body, they can wean out the bad information and focus on the good. I have yet to master that skill though….

I’ve heard about all the amazing waterfalls in Hamilton but have never been to them! Will have to try to get there on a trip home sometime (home is Cambridge).
Love the 360degree panoramic! Makes me feel like I am there.

Yeah, I loved all the pictures too but especially the panoramic one. I put it on full screen and toggled the picture up to the sky. I felt like I was laying on the forest floor and looking up at the sky through the tops of the trees.

I always love hearing other people’s photographic journeys, switching from point and shoot to something bigger, growing into new things… this was so much fun to read! And that is a great Photosynth job! It’s so cool that Eric is into photography too, and clearly very good at it! :D

Oh wow Ange, this looks incredible! Looks like you and I had similar agendas this weekend, but our hike wasn’t nearly as long as yours (think 2 hours instead of 2 days!) I’d love to go see some of the trails that have waterfalls along the way. We were at the Kelso conservation area but I did see a few other maps for waterfall trails. You guys look like pros with your tripods in the water! :)

Beautiful pics! I live in Hamilton and used to run those trails (before kids)….thanks for reminding me that I must go back. Maybe for a hike and picnic with my family this summer….the hike might be a little slower than it used it be – with a 4 year old and 1 year old.

I bet that was a great run! I was saying to Eric I would like to run them sometime. I bet your kids would love the waterfalls. :) I was surprised at how well-groomed many of the trails were…nice for families.

awesome story, I cannot believe how far your photography has come since that cookie picture! I also enjoy looking back on old photos and feeling proud of how things have improved, but my its a slow learning process huh! Well worth it.

Angela~ I am so like you. Hubby got me a Canon T2i for my May birthday and I have not learned much about it. Intimidated. Big learning curve.
Yes, I will learn and enjoy my new camera.
So loving your blog over the years. I hope you are happy in the apartment.

Gorgeous shots! Webster Falls is such a beautiful area – awesome escarpment country. Love all the huge (house-sized) rocks, etc. A friend told about it a few weeks ago so we headed there with our two little boys. We had such a great day and hiked for a couple of hours. Didn’t make it to Tews – we’ll hit that one on our next visit.

Thank you for giving me hope on the camera front! I’ve been a point-and-shoot person for years for two reasons: not wanting to lug around huge camera equipment wherever I go, and also, the intimidation factor (I find camera manuals to be very daunting). Anyway, I love quality photography and capturing beautiful scenes, so I’m sure I’ll venture out of my comfort zone on this at some point…

Btw, regarding the waterfall pics – I like them equally… the fast shutter speed makes me feel like I’m really there (I can imagine dipping my toes in!), and the slow speed (flowy water) gives the images a picturesque, “professional” kind of look – like you’d see in a beautiful wall calendar.

Hey Christine, Glad to hear that you enjoyed Webster falls. We can’t wait to go back and hike more of the trail (I think it was the Bruce trail attached, but I could be mistaken!). I still can’t believe there are 120 waterfalls in that area…quite amazing.
Love your thoughts on the shutter speeds! Goodluck with your own photography.

It is the Bruce! This makes me miss living in Burlington – even though the waterfalls here in BC are a bit higher :). A fun place for getting some shots (and a nice easy hiking spot) is Hendrie Park, think its still Burlington at that point, but really right on border of Burl/Ham. The chickadees will feed out of your hand and there’s loads of them!

Those are great pictures! I love the look of the pictures on the right with the ‘smooth’ water. So peaceful looking! As a Hamiltonian it makes me really excited to see others venturing to Hamilton to discover all the waterfalls. They are a definitely a hidden gem in a city that doesn’t really have a reputation for being beautiful. I feel so lucky to be a few minutes from beautiful trails that lead to waterfalls such as these. Keep up the great work with the photography!

You really have come a long way in your photographic journey. It gives me hope, as I’m still stuck in the comfort zone of the automatic setting on my dslr. one day, right!
Your photos are beautiful – i personally like the ones on the right as well. the soft water is a great contrast to the sharp rocks.

I lived in Hamilton for two years while I went to McMaster university and never once did I go to see the falls! I knew they existed, but I could never gather up the courage to make the effort and hike. I regret it now! It looks soo beautiful. Looks like you had an amazing time and can’t wait to see Part II :)

I grew up in Hamilton, and loved to walk the trails and the forests on the side of the “mountain.” Hamilton is so much nicer than many people think it is. Lots of trees, old houses and great shops. I didn’t know, though, that there were quite some many waterfalls! Wow! I am hoping to go back this summer for some hikes in the university area. Lovely photos you guys took!

What a wonderful weekend. You are such a trooper for taking your camera with you. I just did a 5-day hike in the Colombian jungle and we only took the small point-and-shoot with us.. and even then we were quite tired, so we didn’t take that many photos! I will have to check out these trails, for sure, though, since they are so close. :)

Your pictures are beautiful! I dream of having a camera like that someday…but for now my blog @ bakingblissful.blogspot.com is just gonna have to live with the food being photographed by a point and shoot!

Great pictures! I am from Hamilton, and last summer my boyfriend and I made it our mission to see as many of the 120 waterfalls as we could. We only made it to about 10 before moving to Korea for a couple years, but it was still a neat challenge and we’ll hopefully get to the rest next summer when we get back. Best of luck!

I love this post! I was recently thinking about how I should get out of the point and shoot camera and go a little more technical. Like you, I`ve had this idea put into my head a long time ago and I just haven`t done it yet. Your pictures are beautiful and they really show the difference!

I’m ashamed to say that I went to McMaster for 3 years and never ever laid eyes on a waterfall in Hamilton! I think it’s worth my 2 hour drive to check them out now! I had no idea such a beautiful spot was smack dab in the middle of southern Ontario!

Stunning photos Angela!! I want to visit there-Cross that out, I want to live there! I really enjoyed your backstory on photography too, I am inspired. :)
What a fun adventure to do with the husband too. :-)

Love this post! I have always taken tons of photos but didn’t start caring about the quality as much until I had my daughter. I couldn’t (and still can’t) stand the thought of dragging her to a studio and have posed photos that cost us too much. Instead, I invested in an SLR and take all my own photos of her. I love that in every photo, there’s a story and moments are caught, not poses… I’m definitely due for a lens upgrade though, at least. Anyways, love that 360 shot! P.S. I wish my husband would get into photography – he stinks at it, lol!

Wow, yes I love shots that capture water flowing with a slow shutter speed – it somehow translates the power of the moving water so much better. Amazing shots! You have become quite the photography pro ;)

I love reading about your photography journey! My husband and I used to share our T2i, but it became much more blissful when we each got our own (I upgraded to the T3i and he went all out on the 5D Mark III). Saved our marriage (okay, it didn’t need saving, but it certainly didn’t hurt) :)

I have hiked Hamilton waterfalls since I was a wee girl (I’m over 50 now) and have always adored them. People don’t know what a gem Hamilton is and I’m so glad you have found us! Thanks for all your recipes. My daughter has a vegan partner and child so your site has been very helpful as I (a vegetarian for most of my life) try to move towards being a vegan as well.

This was such an informative post – and gives me hope for my photography skills continuing to improve (they have a long way to go!!). Also, I am thrilled to say that I have BEEN to Hamilton which is extremely exciting as I sit here on the other side of the world :D

Really enjoyed your post and fantastic photos(and back story too!)…Looks like a great weekend and many more to come(being on a mission is a good thing :). I have had my Nikon D5000 for 2 yrs and no nothing about it(this is really sad I use my cellphone for quick pics :(…I really need a course(or crack open the book that came with it–but it’s so thick!). Your post has put me on a mission to figure my camera out and spen much more time with it,,,thx

I am a Hamilton native and have been enjoying these falls my entire life. I am sad to report that the stairs leading to the base of the falls are closed indefinitely due to safety concerns and (I believe) some environmental concerns with such high traffic. It’s such a gorgeous spot but all the tourism was doing some serious harm to the ecosystem, from what I’ve heard.

I could be mistaken though – It definitely warrants some further research. I am glad you had such a wonderful day in Hamilton, though. We have so many fabulous places to hike, bike, run and explore. This area really is misunderstood :)

I’m not certain I belong here. I don’t think I’ve seen a single male poster. Perhaps Eric censors them. LOL

However, I feel obliged to let you know how immediately impressed I was with the quality of your site and the content. I just happened across the site tonight on a search for vegan friendly snacks. I made the Endurance Crackers and Salt and Vinegar Chick Peas tonight. Both were easy and the crackers are awesome. I ended up throwing some crumbled ones into a spinach salad and it became tastier too. Love seeds! I’m really looking forward to exploring some more of your recipes (yes I can cook more than just the simple snacks) and await the cookbook. I recently made the move to whole foods plant based nutrition after becoming much more active over the past 18 months, losing almost 40 pounds, running a few races including a marathon and a 50k; and now training for triathlons.

The kicker that inspired me to post was that fact that you’re obviously from the Hamilton area given the falls posts. I live in Waterdown and we visit the falls on occasion. They are great! As are trail runs through the area (check out the Sulphur Springs 100 miler or relay) – which I gather you also like.

Anyway, just thought I would give you two more “thumbs up” on your work. Like you need it. ;-)

So glad you left a comment! You are so right, I don’t get many comments from men, but I do wish that I did see more of a balance. :) My own husband doesn’t even comment so not sure there is much hope! hah. Anyway, so glad to see you are in the area and thanks for the tips on the hiking spots. We only started exploring the Hamilton area (we’re in Oakville) last summer so we have much more to explore.
Thanks for trying the recipes by the way! Glad they are working out for you. Those are 2 of my fav snacks. Congrats on all the changes you’ve made to your diet…it sounds like you are doing some amazing things! Sadly, I’m not racing anymore as I tore my meniscus last spring. Maybe someday I can get back into it though.
Take care!

I Love to Hike! Your pictures are beautiful! I hope to see more of your “hiking adventures” this spring and summer (2013). Meanwhile, I think with the weather improving it’s time to get my own hiking boots out and explore!

I just stumbled upon your blog today and have become addicted. I am from Greensville where Websters Falls so when I saw this it made me so happy. Keep up with your amazing site and great recipes. I will definitely be cooking many of them :)